Bask in the splendor of the paintings and the details of how the watercolor medium was influenced to become American Watercolor.

This is a wonderfully illustrated well researched book about the history of watercolor painting in America. Although it accompanies an exhibit at the Philadelphia Art Museum it does not read like just a catalog. It traces the evolution of watercolors from an amateur form of painting to a well respected art form. A lot of emphasis is on the American Watercolor Society from the 1860s to the Turn of the Century. The final chapter does have offer an overview of modern watercolor painting. Even though there is a lot of information here the book is very easy to read. I loved all the color illustrations. They really add to the book. Enjoy

An extremely well-researched and detailed look at American watercolor painting. When I think watercolor art, I tend to think of the more famous European artists first, like Turner, or, going back a little farther time-wise, Albrecht Duerer (mainly because I hit my head on a beam at the Duerer museum...). Not enough love is given to 19th Century American artists, and this book shines a light on some of the great American watercolor artists. Definitely recommend to anyone studying American art, art history, or watercolor artwork.

Wow, this book is filled with beautiful paintings, and it's informative and fun to read, too. It's a treat for the eyes!

Five stars. An epic, academic, comprehensive, important contribution to the art world. Based on the author's Ph.D. dissertation, here is a meticulously-researched work that will interest art historians, artists, and art-lovers alike. Those who previously knew little about the development of watercolor painting in the United States are in for a treat. Some of the artists discussed are household names, their works readily recognizable. Others are less familiar to the general public. The book includes discussions of the contributions and background of famous and lesser-known women artists.

Due to painstaking-details, some parts of the work may seem cumbersome but they are worth wading through. Of particular interest to craftspeople of all persuasions will be a final section in the book about the development of watercolor paints. The notes in the back of the work provide encyclopedic background information along with appendices and information about each work pictured.

Watercolor's Fascinating Path, From 1866 to 1925, to the "Familiar and Respectable"

This is much more than a nice picture book companion to an important exhibition, although it certainly is that. The introductory essay by Kathleen A. Foster of the Center for American Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, (one of my favorites), succinctly, and rather amiably, sketches the development of the water color movement in the U.S.. From Homer, Eakins and Sargent, the early heroes of the movement, we follow the fortunes, successes and failures of many artists, some well known, (like Hopper, Childe Hassam, and often overlooked Demuth), and many less so. This might be settled and obvious material for those expert in the field, but the curious amateur, or visitor, will find much of interest in even just the opening section of this book. I've never focused much on watercolor as such, and this book will open the reader's eyes to the vitality, importance and enduring appeal of this medium and mode of expression.

After the introduction we dive in to much more detailed considerations, in a general chronological outline, of particular topics, developments, associations, controversies, and enthusiasms during the period addressed. The text is a heady mix of history, criticism and appreciation. But, the interested amateur may be forgiven for skimming some of this scholarship because the star at this point is the brilliant and luminous reproductions. The book is not only informative but also generous and beautiful, (and there aren't too many petunias or eggs).

So, if, unlike Rocky Balboa, you can't drop by the Philadelphia Museum of Art, this triumphant and gorgeous book can help take you there. A very happy find. (Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)